


Close-Knit

by WrathoftheStag (Mwuahna)



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Casual drinking, Falling In Love, Jack being Jack, Jack teaches Bitty how to knit, Knitting, M/M, Zimbits falling in love AU, jack outside of hockey, mentions of rehab, oblivious and in love, the zimmermann charm, with a dash of canon, zimbits - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-26
Updated: 2019-03-26
Packaged: 2019-12-18 08:57:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18246575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mwuahna/pseuds/WrathoftheStag
Summary: “Do you think…”“Spit it out, Bittle.”“Do you think you might be able to show me?  Show me how to knit?  Maybe?  Sometime?”Jack smiled softly.  “You’d be into that?”The story of how Jack taught Bitty how to knit, and got more than either ever imagined.





	Close-Knit

**Author's Note:**

> This story germinated from this [small bullet point fic](http://wrathofthestag.tumblr.com/post/183073926864/so-i-had-this-idea-for-a-fic-on-my-way-into-work) and then just grew out of control—in a good way! I love writing about them falling in love again and again.

**"Properly practiced, knitting soothes the troubled spirit, and it doesn't hurt the untroubled spirit either." - Elizabeth Zimmermann**

“Please describe the methodological limitations in using oral histories as a means of collecting historiographic information.”

Bitty blinked a few times. 

“The who and the what now?” he asked as he looked at that week’s history class assignment. His mouth twisted and turned until he pursed his lips, and then shrugged.

“Historiographic information,” Bitty repeated as if it would make more sense if he said it slower.

He sighed and tossed his laptop off to the side of the bed. Glancing at the clock on his nightstand, he realized Ransom wouldn’t be back home for another two hours. Shitty was out helping Lardo at Kotter, and Holster was unavailable. That left… well, that left you-know-who.

Bitty grabbed his textbook and laptop, and made his way toward Jack’s room. If anyone could help with history, it would be Jack. Lately, they’d started to finally get along so he’d throw himself on the mercy of Jack’s captainly tendencies and ask for help outside the rink.

Bitty quickly rapped on the door, then walked right on in.

“Hey, Jack--”

“ _CRISSE_ , BITTLE!” Jack yelled from his bed as he quickly covered his lap with a blanket.

“Oh, dear lord!” Bitty cried out while he froze in place and covered his eyes. 

“GET OUT!” 

“I am so, sorry! I didn’t mean to walk in on your--your… private time!”

Bitty backed out of the room, eyes still covered and slammed into the wall. A few pucks tumbled onto his head from the shelves above and caused Bitty to fall flat on his ass with a large, “Oomph!”

Bitty, mortified, remained on the floor, eyes still closed and perfectly still. He could hear Jack sigh.

“It’s fine. You can open your eyes, I guess.”

“No, that’s okay!” Bitty said with eyes remaining screwed tightly shut.

“Bittle. Open your eyes.”

Bitty opened one eye, then slowly the other. Jack stood in front of him and offered his hand. He was fully dressed and didn’t look disheveled. In his other hand, however, were a couple of knitting needles and what appeared to be a scarf hanging off them.

“You were… knitting?” Bitty asked as Jack pulled him up.

“Yeah, so get your mind out of the gutter, Bittle,” Jack replied with a smirk.

“You knit?”

Jack looked at his scarf, then back at Bitty.

“Looks like it, eh?”

Bitty smiled as Jack bent down and picked up Bitty’s textbook.

“Catch,” he said and tossed it to Bitty. 

Jack plopped himself back onto his bed and continued knitting.

“So, did you need something or?” he asked after he knit a row.

Bitty watched mesmerized.

“Bittle?”

“Um, yeah. I had a question about my homework but, um, is that a scarf?” 

Bitty walked over and gingerly sat on the edge of Jack’s bed.

“Yeah, it’s for my Aunt Suzette. It’s her birthday next month.”

Bitty watched as Jack’s fingers deftly worked, pulling yarn and making the needles fly.

“My MooMaw crochets,” Bitty said, then blushed when he realized he just compared Jack to his grandmother.

“That’s different,” Jack said as he pulled some more yarn away from the ball that then bounced off Jack’s bed and rolled across the room.

Bitty crawled after it and handed it to Jack.

“I know. That uses one needle, and you’re using two.”

“One hook,” Jack clarified as he took the ball of yarn. “Thanks.”

Bitty watched a bit more, then Jack paused.

“So, homework?”

“Huh?”

“You had a question about your homework?” Jack asked and put down his knitting.

“Oh, yeah. Something about methodological challenges and historiographic something or other—how were you doing that so fast?”

Jack smiled, a tiny thing. “Well, I’ve been knitting since I was 19, so you know.”

Bitty shook his head as Jack shrugged and continued working.

“Is this for your ‘What is History?’ class?”

“Yeah, I thought it would be more of an intro, easy course, but nope. Again, I played myself.”

“Haha.”

“So where did you learn how to knit? Did your grandma show you?”

Jack smiled again and this time he shook his head. 

“I picked it up in rehab.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

Jack paused and looked at Bitty, as he studied him briefly.

“It’s fine. There wasn’t much to do there, you know? And they had a class. It was raining that night, so I couldn’t go running and well, I thought, why not?”

Bitty watched silently as Jack finished three more rows.

“Turns out, I was really good at it. Seed stitch, basket weave, chevron, Irish moss... I can pretty much do them all.”

Bitty smiled. “MooMaw would be so impressed."

“It’s really calming too,” Jack said quietly.

Bitty watched Jack work for a few minutes, both silent, and he felt a sense of serenity begin to wash over him.

“Go on and read me the question,” Jack finally said.

“I don’t wanna intrude on your...” Bitty said as he gestured at Jack’s knitting.

“It’s okay,” Jack said not taking his eyes off his hands, “I can knit and talk. Just don’t talk to me while I’m chewing gum and walking.”

“Haha,” Bitty replied. “If you really don’t mind.”

“Shoot.”

“Okay, so we’re reading about oral histories…”

A few hours later, Jack was binding off his scarf at the same time Bitty was done with his homework.

“Thanks, Jack. This was super helpful,” Bitty said as he shut his laptop.

“No problem, Bittle. There. Finished. I just have to weave in the ends.”

He held open the scarf and admired his work. 

“Here, try this on. You and my aunt are about the same size.”

“You mean averaged-sized?” Bitty said with a pout. “I don’t know if I should be insulted here.”

Jack laughed as he handed the scarf to Bitty. 

“Sizeist. Don’t let Shitty hear you talk like that.”

Bitty wrapped the scarf around his neck, once, twice. It was a soft wool in a pale lavender color. It felt like a kitten and Bitty caressed the end with his cheek—then he noticed Jack smirking at him.

“That good, huh?”

“Hush you. Yes, it’s very nice. Well done, Jack.”

The two smiled at each other until Bitty finally spoke.

“So, thanks again.”

“Anytime, Bittle.”

Bitty grabbed his book and laptop and made his way toward the door.

“Bittle?”

Bitty turned toward Jack. “Yeah?”

“Can I have my scarf back?”

“Oh,” Bitty said sheepishly as he unwound the scarf and handed it to Jack.

Bitty then lingered by the door.

“Do you think… that is…”

“Spit it out, Bittle.”

“Do you think you might be able to show me? Show me how to knit? Maybe? Sometime?”

Jack smiled softly. “You’d be into that?”

“Well, as much as I love baking, I can’t _procrastibake_ all the time—believe me. I’ve tried.”

Jack laughed. “I believe it.”

“And this just looked so soothing and, well, it’s nice to maybe mix things up and have a little something to show for it after besides a happy belly full of pie.”

“Yeah, we could do that.”

Bitty’s face lit up.

“Thanks, Jack! I won’t let you down.”

Jack grinned. “It’s fine, Bittle. No big deal.”

“Great, thanks, Jack,” Bitty began to leave again and then paused. “You’re not going to wake me up at 4:30 for knitting lessons are you?”

“You’re not going to stop baking pies, are you?” Jack chirped back.

“No,” Bitty laughed.

“Okay, then. Your beauty sleep is safe with me. For now.”

Bitty smiled and gently closed the door behind him.

 **+++**

Several days passed and Jack hadn’t brought up knitting lessons, so Bitty didn’t want to mention anything. Perhaps Jack was just being a polite Canadian and really didn’t have time to teach Bitty how to knit? Bitty practically forced Jack into it, and Bitty knew Jack had a lot on his plate with it being his senior year and all. He was talking with GMs and scouts frequently, and, of course, graduation was looming.

So Bitty was surprised when he got home from class and there was a bag from a place called _Knot Just Knits_ sitting on the edge of his bed. Inside were two skeins of thick yarn, in Samwell red, and a pair of bamboo knitting needles. There was a sticky note slapped onto the side.

_Let me know when you’re free. - J._

Bitty picked up the yarn and stroked it against his cheek. His eyes fluttered shut, and he smiled. He grabbed his bag and made his way to Jack’s room.

 

“Some think that knitting originated in the Middle East, then made its way to Europe where it finally reached the Americas.”

Bitty smirked as Jack continued while he sat cross-legged on his bed.

“There isn’t going to be a quiz, is there?” 

Jack blushed. 

“No, no quiz. I just think it’s important to know the history of things before you start them.”

“Clearly,” Bitty chirped. He sat at Jack’s desk and spun gently from side to side in the chair.

“There have been some knitted things found in Egypt. Historians think they’re probably from the 11th century CE.”

Bitty raised his hand.

“We’re not in class, Bittle.”

“Not to be rude or anything, Jack, but will I be doing any actual knitting today?”

Jack smirked. 

“Fine, Bittle. Euh, I guess sitting on the bed is easiest?” Jack motioned at his bed. “More room.”

“Sure.”

“All right.”

Bitty hopped off the chair, took his shoes off and sat on Jack’s bed, cross-legged as well. 

“Okay, the first thing you do is start with a slipknot. It's basically your first stitch. Here, watch.”

Jack’s hands moved quickly as he continued.

“Make a loop, like this, see?” 

Bitty took out his needles and pulled out the yarn from one end of the skein. He tried to mimic what Jack had done.

“Then pull another loop through that one like this. And then you can put your needle through that loop. Got that?”

“Um, I made a loop?” Bitty said already sounding defeated.

“Okay,” Jack said as he undid his loop. “Let me do it again.”

The two scooted closer, as their knees bumped together. Bitty carefully watched Jack repeat the motions.

Bitty held up his needle to show his work and Jack smiled.

“Good. Now let’s cast on. Like this…”

Jack demonstrated how to cast on stitches.

“By the 17th century, knitting became super popular. Fishermen's sweaters were a source of income for many families in the Scottish Isles,” Jack said as he worked. “Okay, let’s see.”

Bitty struggled through it but eventually got it and cast on twenty stitches of his own.

“Good, now let’s focus on adding rows.”

Bitty was about three rows in when he showed his progress to Jack.

“How’s this?”

“Hmm,” he said as he took Bitty’s knitting, then quickly unraveled what he’d done. “Start over.”

“Hey!” Bitty cried out. “You totally just _eat more protein’d_ my work!” 

Jack looked down at the mound of yarn in his hand. 

“Shit. Sorry. Sorry…”

Bitty took the needles back.

“Sheesh.”

“Sorry, Bittle. Uh, do you want to cast on again? Maybe with fewer stitches?”

“Fine, but don’t undo it.”

“I won’t. I promise,” Jack said as he crossed his heart.

Bitty smiled and then cast on five stitches. He kept going, working slowly but steadily until he had about ten rows done.

“Look!”

“Good job, Bittle!”

“It’s a scarf for Bun. I mean--” Bitty blushed.

Jack grinned. 

“Is that his name?”

“Who’s name?”

“Your rabbit. Is his name Bun?”

Bitty sighed. 

“Fine, the jig is up. Yes, I have a stuffed rabbit, and yes his name is Bun. Señor Bunny and I’ve had him since I was a baby.”

“I’ve seen him, you know,” Jack chirped.

“You have not.”

Jack smiled. “Yes, I have.”

“When?”

Jack worked on the toque for his dad some more. 

“We were coming back from that game against Colgate, and you were asleep on the bus and there he was in your lap.”

“Lord! How embarrassing.”

“No, it’s fine. Sometimes you just need a little bit of home with you, right?”

Bitty shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.”

The two knitted quietly for a bit.

“Did you have a stuffed animal when you were a kid, Jack?”

“Sort of.”

“Sort of? What do you mean sort of? That’s a yes or no question. What, was your cuddly a hockey puck or something?” Bitty laughed.

Jack blushed as Bitty’s eyes widened.

“Oh my god, it was! It was a hockey puck, wasn’t it?” Bitty said as he slapped Jack on the knee. 

“I teethed on it, then I didn’t want to let it go,” Jack explained.

“Jack! Could you be any more Canadian?”

“Sorry about that, eh?” Jack said as he smiled and exaggerated his O’s.

Bitty’s phone alarm went off. 

“I gotta go. I’m meeting a guy from my math class at the library.”

“A guy?”

“Yeah, we’re studying for a test next week. He’s the smartest in the class, so I zoned in and now we’re bartering. I’m giving him some brownie pie in exchange for his brain.”

Bitty rose from the bed and stretched, cracking his back.

“Guess I’ll stop at Annie’s first then head on over.”

Jack got up and followed Bitty to the door.

“Don’t study too hard,” Jack chirped.

“Believe me, no worries there… unfortunately,” Bitty laughed. “Bye, Jack.”

“Bye, Bittle.”

As Bitty walked to Annie’s he felt a certain lightness he hadn’t felt in a while. Who knew the knitting would be so effective this quickly?

**+++**

Jack turned and there was Bitty, shooting the puck in his direction. Lately, the two were on fire and Jack felt he was playing the best he had in years. A quick snap of the wrist and the puck flew beautifully into the net for a gorgeous clutch shot. The red-wearing fans in the Quinnipiac stadium erupted into crazed cheers as SMH won 4-3. 

“Bitty!” Jack shouted as Bitty skated into his arms. “Good going!”

The two smiled at one another as Bitty happily skated away.

The bus ride back home was a cacophonous rowdy event with Holster conducting that damn Roach/Human survey again. The sounds of Dex and Nursey arguing, Shitty and Lardo singing, and Chowder laughing were oddly comforting to Jack.

“Want some company?” Bitty said as his head popped up from the seat behind Jack.

“Sure, yeah…”

Jack moved over and Bitty hopped in next to Jack.

“What a game, huh?” Bitty said.

“Drift compatible? Is that what Ransom and Holster call it?”

Bitty laughed. “Yeah, there was definitely some of that today.”

The two sat quietly for a moment until Bitty cleared his throat.

“So I was watching some Youtube videos… about, you know.”

Jack looked perplexed. 

“Porn?” he whispered.

Bitty laughed and shook his head. 

“No, silly. You know…” He mimicked knitting.

“Haha. That. Right.”

“I kinda get it, but I think I pick it up faster in person.”

“How’s it going?”

“Well, I have a very long skinny scarf for Bun, but I think he might have to wear it with the needles sticking out of it forever.” 

“We can go over casting off again,” Jack said quietly.

“Great! Thanks. And it keeps twisting. It doesn’t lay flat, so I don’t know what I did,” Bitty said with a sigh.

“It’s your first project, Bittle. I wouldn’t beat yourself over it too much.”

“Will you look at that! Jack Laurent Zimmermann telling me to not go full throttle 110%. Will wonders ever cease?”

Jack smirked and hated that he was blushing.

“You know, contrary to popular opinion, I am pretty relaxed about some things.”

Bitty looked at him with a skeptical eyebrow.

“Like what?”

Jack played with his jacket’s zipper.

“Sometimes, I wait a day or two before I put my laundry away.”

“Scandal!” Bitty said with a laugh. “I suppose you occasionally turn in your library books a day or two late, too.”

“No, because what if someone needs them?” Jack said sincerely.

Bitty laughed again. “The most conscientious Canadian I know.”

Jack smiled and looked out the window to watch the road fly by. It was nice just sitting with Bitty, either talking or not talking… he didn’t feel pressured to do either. 

He loved Shitty, really he did, but sometimes it was just exhausting having to keep up with Shitty’s constant chatter. Shitty was a live wire—nervous energy that manifested itself in nudity and high decibels. Bitty… was the opposite, and it was good.

Bitty pulled out his headphones and began to plug them in his ears.

“New playlist?”

“Uh-huh. It’s my ‘Just Kicked Ass on the Road’ playlist.” Bitty paused. “Do you want to hear?”

“Sure.”

Jack took the earbud and was about to put it in when they heard Wicky yell, “I don’t want roaches or a person in the attic!” 

Jack and Bitty laughed.

**+++**

“So if I make a bunch of squares, in theory, I could sew them together and make a blanket, right?”

“Yeah, I guess you could.”

“My mama would be so impressed,” Bitty said with a hint of smugness in his voice.

“Let’s see, if you made the squares 4 x 4 and it was at least a twin size…” Jack did the mental math. “You’d need about 350 squares or so.”

Bitty’s smugness faded instantly. 

“That’s a lot of squares… thanks a lot, dream squasher.”

“Dream squasher?” Jack laughed. “I’m just telling you what you’ll need.”

“Maybe Bun needs a new blanket?” Bitty replied unenthused.

“Haha.”

The two sat comfortably in the living room. Everyone else was out and about and it was nice being able to sit out in the haus open.

“What are you working on?” Bitty asked. “You’ve got a lot of needles going on in there.”

“A pair of socks for my mom.”

“Wow… you think maybe I’ll be that good one day?”

“Anything is possible with enough dedication, Bittle. You overcame your fear of checking, you can overcome your fear of dropped stitches.”

Bitty smiled. “I think my problem is that I get distracted super easy--”

“No! Really?” Jack chirped.

Bitty rolled his eyes. 

“ANYWAY, as I was saying, I get distracted super easy and don’t watch what I’m doing, so my hands just work on autopilot, and that’s when I get into trouble. An increased row here, a dropped stitch there. We can’t all multitask with laser focus like _some_ people.”

Jack’s expression then grew serious.

“There was a time when I wasn’t like that… I was a different sort of hockey robot, I guess.”

Bitty stopped his knitting and looked directly at Jack.

“When I… _learned how to knit_ , I so focused on being the best, at all costs, I didn’t see everything else I could have lost. What I almost did.”

Jack looked down at his lap and worked a piece of yarn in between his finger and thumb.

“I’m lucky, you know? To have gotten a second chance to… um…”

“Learn how to knit socks?” Bitty said gently.

“Yeah, to learn how to knit socks.”

“Sometimes, we need to remember that second chances are even better than first ones, you know?”

Jack looked at Bitty and smiled softly. 

Just then Holster, Shitty and Ransom burst in, obnoxiously loud and unexpected. Jack and Bitty jumped up and shoved their things under the couch cushions and quickly sat back down.

“What the hell’s going on here, brahs!?” Shitty bellowed when he saw Jack and Bitty out of breath on the couch.

“Dudes, you look like we just walked in on you two doing something narsty!” Ransom added.

They stared at Jack and Bitty, then Holster snorted.

“‘Chyeah, right! Jack and Bitty are totally doing it, right under our noses, and we just walked in on them!”

Everyone laughed and Jack and Bitty joined in with their own nervous laughter.

“Damn, Bittle. Our secret is out. Oh no,” he said flatly as he walked to the kitchen. 

Holster and Ransom followed behind Jack, still laughing and making jokes. Shitty stared at Bitty for a beat.

“You okay, Bits?”

Bitty smiled. “Yeah… totally fine.”

Shitty offered him a quick smile and nod as he made his way to the kitchen as well. Bitty pulled their knitting out from under the cushions and quietly went upstairs.

**+++**

“We’re going on a field trip,” Jack said as he sat on the haus steps apparently waiting for Bitty.

“Who? The team? Where?” Bitty replied as he adjusted his messenger bag. 

He was just coming home from class and all he wanted to do was get into his jammies and bake the rest of the night.

“No, just the two of us. Come on,” he said with a smile as he began to walk.

“Is it far?”

“Not really. Trust me, you’ll like it.”

They chatted in Jack’s car and Bitty noticed soon they were close to Boston proper.

“So, where are we going again?”

“To meet Mary and Rose,” Jack said plainly as if that explained their destination.

“Who are Mary and Rose?” 

“The women who own _Knot Just Knits_. It’s where I get my supplies from.”

“Oh, cool.”

Bitty reached over to change the radio and Jack laughed.

“By all means, feel free to change my music, Bittle.”

“Sorry! Instinct, I guess,” Bitty laughed. “What are you getting at the store?”

“Something I ordered came in,” Jack replied without giving any further information.

“Huh. Okay.”

Fifteen minutes later, Jack pulled up in front of a small storefront. It was warmly lit inside, and Bitty noticed a cat in a basket asleep in the large plate glass window.

“Here we go,” Jack said. He unbuckled his seatbelt and smiled at Bitty. “Come on.”

The bell above the door rung as they entered the shop. Instantly, Bitty was struck by the smell of earl grey tea.

He looked around the shop and was charmed. The walls were painted purple, and there were baskets of yarn on shelves all over the store. Skeins of yarn were piled on top of each other in cubbies on the wall, and various knitting books sat on tables across the shop.

At the register were two older women, both with silvery grey hair and sweet smiles. They reminded Bitty of his MooMaw.

“Jack! We weren’t expecting you until tomorrow,” one of the women said.

“Hi, Mary. Hi, Rose.”

Bitty smiled as he approached the counter with Jack.

“This is my friend, Eric.”

“Well, hello,” Rose said, “and welcome. It’s so nice to finally meet a friend of Jack’s.”

“Nice to meet you,” Bitty said as he extended his hand.

“Can I get you two some tea?” Rose asked.

“Oh, um…”

“Get the tea, Bittle,” Jack said. “It’s good.”

“All right. Thank you, ma’am.”

Bitty walked around the shop, taking in all the different colors and weights of yarn. There was a long wooden table with various size needles in mason jars; some were metal, some were bamboo, there were even a few glass ones. Bitty then felt something rub against his leg.

“Why hello, sweetness,” Bitty said as he got on his haunches to pet the cat he had seen asleep in the window.

“That’s Gordie, don’t mind him,” Mary called out.

“Gordie?” Bitty asked. 

The cat was fluffy and white and very fancy looking. He certainly didn’t look like a Gordie.

“That’s right! After the greatest hockey player ever to walk the face of the Earth—no offence to your pop, Jack,” Rose said as she handed Bitty an honest-to-goodness cup and saucer of tea.

Jack laughed heartily. “None taken, believe me. And this one didn’t even know who my dad was.”

“No!” they said and Bitty felt his face burn.

Mary and Rose both laughed. 

“And _this one_ will never let me live it down,” Bitty shot back, and Mary and Rose laughed some more.

“How’s the latest project coming along?” Mary asked as she gently patted Jack’s hand. 

“Not bad,” he said with a smile. “Just adding the fringe is taking longer than expected.”

“That knitting minutiae will get you,” she replied.

Bitty smiled as he noticed how at ease Jack was. He wasn’t really a touchy-feely kind of person, except with Shitty, and really that was just Shitty’s M.O. with everyone (you could not escape the Shitty hugs), so it was so nice seeing Jack being sweet with the two women, and happily leaning into their grandmotherly touches. 

“Before I forget, here’s the book you ordered,” Mary said. 

She reached under the counter and pulled out a hardcover book. 

“Now I know you could have just gotten this from Amazon, so I appreciate that you ordered it from us and drove all the way out here to get it,” she said.

Jack shrugged modestly. “Small businesses first, right?”

Bitty smiled and then Jack turned around and gave the book to him.

“It’s for you.”

Bitty looked down at the book and his face split into a large smile.

“Jack! Goodness! _Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac_.”

“No relation,” Jack said with a grin as Mary and Rose both smiled behind him.

“This looks great, Jack. You really shouldn’t have… thanks so much. This is so nice of you,” Bitty said as he pressed the book to his chest.

“Well I figured now you wouldn’t have to bug me about every little knitting detail. You could just look it up,” Jack chirped.

“Very funny,” Bitty replied dryly as Jack continued grinning.

The two smiled at each other and then Jack turned toward Mary.

“Mary, can I use your bathroom before we go?”

“Sure, Jack. Go right on back.”

“Thanks.”

Bitty smiled as he looked at his book again, and carefully flipped the pages.

“He’s never brought anyone here before,” Rose said sweetly. “You must be a special friend,” she said with a wink as she tapped on Bitty’s book.

Bitty became flustered and shook his head, “No--it’s nothing like that. I’m sure--”

Jack came back out and they all stopped talking.

“You hungry?” he asked Bitty with a smile. “I was thinking maybe we could eat something out here, if you’re not in a hurry to get back.”

**+++**

“So, at what point are we knitting one and purling two—just like in the movies and cartoons?”

Jack laughed.

“A purl is a different stitch than what you’ve been doing.”

“Is it harder?”

“Not quite harder, but just different. Do you want to to try it?”

“Sure.”

“Okay, so what you've been knitting so far is a garter stitch. See?” Jack held up Bitty’s latest scarf. “That's what this pattern is called.” 

He quickly cast on a few stitches and churned out some rows as Bitty watched carefully.

Bitty’s knitting lessons had been going on for a couple of weeks now. The two of them squeezing in an hour here, thirty minutes there. Bitty usually felt as though he were all thumbs when knitting, so he appreciated how patient Jack was with him. 

It was nice to have something with Jack outside of hockey. The two went for fro-yo or coffee frequently, but inevitably the talk always turned toward hockey. There was a certain soft playfulness that came about when they were knitting, however. Bitty just chalked it up to how soothing the whole experience was (“It’s like yoga but not!” he once said), even as he cursed a dropped stitch or three. 

“Now, when you do a purl stitch you put the needle in front, like this.”

After a few rows, Jack passed the needles to Bitty.

Bitty’s tongue poked out of the side of his mouth as he worked the needles and Jack smirked as he watched.

“In the front,” Jack said.

“Like this?”

“The other front… the _front_ , Bittle.”

“Damn it,” Bitty said as he tossed a needle onto Jack’s bed. It ricocheted off the mattress.

“Here, let me try something.”

Jack picked up the needles and sat behind Bitty. His legs spread wide and his arms enveloped Bitty.

Bitty swallowed dryly. “Wha- what are you doing?”

“Look,” Jack said as he placed the needles in Bitty’s hand, and then covered them with his own moving their hands together. “Here, maybe it’s easier from this point of view. Okay, now pull the yarn, wrap it like this, the needle goes in front. Got it?”

Bitty held his breath and simply nodded. 

“The purl stitch was invented by English knitters in the 16th century,” Jack said matter-of-factly.

“Uh-huh.”

The warmth of Jack’s body practically seeped into Bitty’s, and suddenly Jack’s presence was just too… everything; too much, too real, too overwhelming, too perfect.

Bitty quickly scooted forward. 

“Yeah, I think I got it.”

He turned to look at Jack, who appeared confused. 

“It’s not that big of a deal, Bittle.”

“Huh?”

“Purl. You don’t have to use it ever if you don’t want. You know? No need to freak out.”

Bitty released a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

“Right. Yeah, of course. Like I said, I got it.”

Bitty hurriedly gathered his things.

“You know, I just remembered that I have a thing—and I’m kind of late. So, I have to go.”

Jack watched with continued confusion as Bitty shoved his things into his tote bag.

“I thought you said you were free the rest of the afternoon?”

“I know—but like I said I-I just remembered.”

“Oh, okay…”

“Bye, Jack!” 

Bitty practically had smoke coming out of the feet as he slammed Jack’s door behind him and pressed his back against it. His heart beat wildly, as he clutched his tote to his chest.

“Shit…” he said when the realization came. 

Bitty thought about Jack and how Jack had made him feel, and how close they’ve gotten lately, and Bitty covered his face as he muffled a groan. 

“Never fall for a straight boy, Eric.”

**+++**

Kegsters were fine as long as Jack had plenty of notice to prepare himself for the crowd, the noise, the _all of it_ , which was why impromptu kegsters really bugged the hell out of him.

He sat grumpily on his bed, as the _thump-thump-thump_ from the bass downstairs shook his bed.

Jack turned to look at his clock on the nightstand.

“It’s only 9:30? _Crisse_ ,” he moaned as he scrubbed his face. He shut his book and rose from the bed. 

He could either stay in his room and be grouchy the rest of the night, or he could go downstairs and see what was going on. Maybe there was still some pie left? 

Jack sighed, reached for his hoodie, and locked his door behind him.

“BRAH! You’re actually out of your room. Fucking kudos to you, Jackaroo,” Shitty said as he brought Jack in for a hug. “Here, drink this—if you want to.”

“Thanks,” Jack said as he took a tiny sip of tub juice and scanned the room. That’s when he spotted Bitty dancing in the middle of the living room amidst a large group of people. 

Some guy that Jack recognized from the swim team danced with Bitty and occasionally whispered something in his ear. Bitty smiled and nodded, and Jack felt that maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to come down. He had some homework he could be working on. 

He was about to turn around when Bitty noticed Jack, and immediately waved and walked toward him with a smile as he left the swim team guy dancing alone.

“Jack! What are you doing here?” he asked. “And drinking tub juice, no less?” 

Bitty stumbled slightly toward Jack.

“Looks like you’ve been drinking some too, eh?”

Bitty smiled brightly and held up his hand bringing his thumb and forefinger almost together. 

“Just a tab--I mean, a tad. A smidge, really.”

“Really.”

Bitty smiled.

“So, who’s your friend?” Jack asked as he looked across the room and noticed the swim guy glaring at them.

“Who? Him?” Bitty asked and pointed.

Jack laughed and pulled Bitty’s hand down. 

“That’s Ryan… or was it Brian? He swims. We were dancin’ and he said…” Bitty paused and leaned in closer to whisper a non-whisper, “that I have a cute butt.”

Jack laughed and waved at Bryan, who at that point, turned away and disappeared into the crowd.

“Well, he’s not wrong,” Jack said then immediately wanted to kick himself. “I mean, objectively speaking, it’s a decent specimen and clearly the squats that you and Ransom have been doing are being effective.”

Bitty shoved Jack, a bit of tub juice sloshed from his cup. 

“Leave it to you to take all the joy out for me out of someone complimenting my bee-hind.” Bitty let out an exaggerated sigh. “Why did I come here? What’s wrong with me?!”

Jack frowned. “Why? What do you mean?”

Bitty shook his head. “Nothing. Never mind. Pay me no attention.”

“Impossible.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, for someone as small as you, you are really loud, take up a lot of space and are hard to ignore,” Jack deadpanned.

“Thanks a lot, you big moose.”

Jack laughed again. “Moose? Ouch, Bittle.”

“If the hoof fits,” Bitty said and took another drink. “Okay, you’re harshing my buzz, and clearly I’m a glutton for punishment—”

“How?” Jack asked completely bewildered.

Bitty looked at him with an eyebrow raised. “Exactly!”

“I don’t understand!”

“I know! So, I'm gonna go dance.”

He turned on his heel and returned to the dancing crowd as Jack watched him walk away, wondering why he suddenly wanted to go back to his room. It was at that moment that he felt a small hand on his forearm.

“Come on, you big lug, let’s go murder some people at beer pong,” Lardo said as she smiled warmly at him.

It was later that evening that Jack noticed the swim team guy on the porch with Bitty. Bryan kept scooting closer and closer while Bitty inched away each time. 

When Bryan put his arm on Bitty’s waist, Jack instinctively walked out the door onto the porch.

“Hey, Bittle! Shitty is looking for you,” he said as he glowered at Bryan.

“Thanks, Jack. Well, it was nice talking to you, Br-ryan. Bye.”

Bitty got up and stumbled on a step as Jack caught him.

“Thank you for saving me,” Bitty said and held onto Jack.

“Well, you had a lot to drink and this guy wasn’t reading your cues.”

“Jeez, I did, didn’t I? I’ve had way too much,” Bitty said as he shook his head and sloppily walked upstairs with Jack.

“Where’s your key?”

“Back pocket,” Bitty said as he plopped himself down onto the floor. He reached around, pulled it out and handed it to Jack.

Jack unlocked the door, scooped Bitty right up and tossed him over his shoulder in a fireman carry.

“I can walk, you know? I’m like a foot away from my bed. Lord have mercy…” Bitty cried out.

“Well, if you’re going to act irresponsibly, I’m going to treat you like a kid.”

Bitty bleated like a goat and laughed.

“Not that kind of a kid, Bittle.”

Jack opened the door, turned on the light, and then gently placed Bitty on his bed. Bitty instantly curled up in a ball and hugged Bun.

“I’m going to take off your shoes, okay?” Jack said.

“Mm-hmm…”

Jack tossed Bitty’s gym shoes off to the corner and then pulled his blanket up and over Bitty’s shoulders and smiled when Bitty hugged Bun even tighter.

“Night, Bittle.”

Bitty, half-asleep, spoke just as Jack was about to shut the door.

“Thanks, Jack. I just… I just like you _so very, very_ much. You know?”

Jack stood at the doorway stunned, then closed the door quietly behind him as he heard Bitty snore.

**+++**

“Bittle! Hey, Bittle!”

Bitty turned and saw Jack run across the street and head right toward him.

“Hey, Jack,” Bitty replied.

Jack jogged over to catch up with Bitty who looked delightfully ruddy and wind-blown. A whisper of last summer’s freckles still danced across Bitty’s nose and Jack smiled.

“Class over?”

“Yeah. My damn ‘What is History?’ class. I’ll tell you what history is! A pain in my ass, that’s what.”

Jack laughed. 

“I was heading over to Annie’s for some coffee. Want to come along?”

Bitty chewed on his bottom lip. “Oh, uh. I’m busy. I have homework… I’m, you know…”

“If it’s history, I can help.”

Bitty paused and looked at Jack. His eyes swept across Jack’s face as if he were searching for something. And for a brief moment, Jack could have sworn he saw sadness in Bitty’s face. Then, the moment passed.

“Sure,” he said with a smile—although the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “When have you ever known me to pass on a cup of coffee? Come on.”

They walked down the sidewalk together and somehow managed to keep up with each other’s pace. While Bitty was much shorter than Jack, he had long legs and a quick stride. Jack then began to walk faster and Bitty grinned as he playfully elbowed Jack in the side. They were practically sprinting when they arrived at Annie’s laughing, as Jack opened the door for Bitty.

“Not for nothing but I am dying for spring to come already,” Bitty said as he hurried inside.

“Why don’t you get a table and I’ll get our coffee. Your usual caramel nightmare?” Jack chirped.

“Yes, please, thank you,” Bitty said as he stuck out his tongue. “And don’t expect me to give you a sip this time. Not with that judgy attitude.”

Jack laughed and got in line. He subtly turned to watch Bitty pick a table, dump his bag on the floor, peel off his layers until he settled down in the chair with a visible exhalation as he ran his fingers through his hair.

“What can I get you?” the barista asked.

“A large caramel macchiato with whipped cream and an extra dribble of caramel on top—and add a dash of that cocoa powder, too. Like three or four shakes. And if you have any sprinkles, add some of those, please.”

“That’s all?”

“Yes. Oh! And a small black coffee. Thanks.”

“Name?”

“Jack.”

By the time Jack returned to the table, Bitty had his knitting out and was tackling his latest project, a pot holder. Bitty was firmly staying in the squares and rectangles knitting lane for now.

“How’s that going?” Jack asked as he carefully put their coffees down.

“So far so good! Thanks, Jack.”

Jack felt his face warm when Bitty took a sip of his drink and licked the whipped cream off his upper lip. 

Jack smiled as he watched Bitty work. Bitty took to knitting with the same aplomb he took to almost everything.

“Don’t forget to keep constant tension on your yarn.”

“Right.”

Jack took a sip of his coffee and settled comfortably into the seat.

“Jack, can I ask you something?”

“Depends,” Jack said in a most serious tone.

“On?”

“On whether or not you can finish this row without dropping another stitch.”

Bitty laughed. “Let me live, Mr. Zimmermann.”

“Go ahead, shoot. Ask away.”

“Why don’t you knit in front of other people?”

Jack played with his coffee mug handle and finally responded. 

“I just don’t want the questions or anything. I know the guys wouldn’t make fun of me, but I just like this for myself, you know?”

Bitty nodded.

“That’s how skating was for me. I mean, sure, I skated for an audience but really it was just for me.”

“Exactly. Something that’s just for me and me alone. It’s mindless and easy and makes me happy.”

Bitty put down his knitting and asked in an almost whisper, “Why are you sharing it with me then?”

Jack didn’t really have an answer. He thought about it and finally replied. 

“Because I knew I could share this with you, and it wouldn’t change knitting for me. It’d still be special, and I’d be able to enjoy it and be happy. The only difference is you’d be sharing it with me as well, Bittle.”

“Oh,” Bitty said quietly.

Jack looked at Bitty, who appeared confused, panicked, and suddenly somewhat sweaty, and had wondered if he had said something wrong. 

He felt his anxiety start to kick in, so he quickly changed the subject—although the subject did nothing to alleviate Jack’s nerves.

“So that was some kegster the other night?” Jack said.

Bitty rubbed his face and nodded. 

“All I remember is the monster hangover I had the next day. So I’d gladly forget any and everything that led up to that. I regretted my life choices, believe you me.”

“Haha,” Jack said with a disappointment he didn’t quite understand. “Right.”

“Why? What happened?”

Jack swallowed dryly, then shook his head. 

“Nothing. Nothing at all. You did bleat like a goat.”

“A goat? I most certainly did not,” Bitty said as he laughed, clearly not remembering anything else from that night.

Jack offered a forced smile. 

“Yeah. It was something. So, are you going to add a loop to your pot holder?”

**+++**

The loss of the Frozen Four stung, and Bitty felt it more for Jack than for any other reason. He knew how deeply Jack took team losses, placing blame on himself for letting down everyone else. As Bitty put his head on Jack’s shoulder while Jack let it all out, Bitty was grateful he could be there for him as they sat in the dark loading dock. 

Jack may not have feelings for him, but Bitty could be the most supportive friend he could possibly be for Jack.

After a while, Jack took a deep breath and shakily exhaled. 

“I guess we should be heading back,” Jack said as he sat up.

“I guess. Jack…”

“Yeah?”

Bitty wanted to tell Jack that he appreciated how much he believed in the team; that he was more inspiring than he knew. That Jack made everyone on the team want to be better, and that he loved everything he did for each and every guy on the team.

“I just wanted to say thanks for everything this year. You were a great captain.”

Jack wiped his face. “Thanks, Bittle.”

“Are knitted handkerchiefs a thing?” Bitty asked earnestly.

Jack snorted unexpectedly. “God, I hope not. That sounds disgusting.”

The two looked at each other and began to laugh. Their soft laughter echoed throughout the loading dock.

**+++**

Graduation was rapidly approaching as was Bitty’s birthday, and Operation Oven was fully underway. Besides the oven, Jack was also knitting some mittens for Bitty. It was too warm out to think about mittens but come fall Jack knew Bitty would appreciate them.

“You’re such a good brah, Jack. Bitty is going to love you for giving him this oven, dude,” Shitty said as Jack paid for the stove at _Best Buy_.

“Haha, sure,” Jack said as he tried to control the flip in the stomach.

So when Bitty finally looked at his new oven, the tears spilling over, Jack did the only thing he could think to do. He pulled Bitty in for a hug. Bitty laughed as Jack’s camera jabbed him in the stomach but Bitty didn’t seem to mind as he pushed it out of the way and buried his face in Jack’s chest.

Jack smiled as Bitty’s positively glowed and hugged his oven with as much care as if it were a newborn.

“Sugar, we are going to have so much fun together,” Bitty said to the oven gently.

A few minutes later, Bitty pulled Jack aside to a quiet corner of the haus living room.

“Thanks, mister.”

“For what?”

“I mean, I know everyone chipped in, but Dex told me it was mainly your idea and well, I know the boys are kinda strapped for cash right now…”

Jack blushed.

“I figured with all the cooking you’ve done the past two years, we’re pretty much even. Ransom said we owed you something like two ovens.”

It was then Bitty’s turn to blush. 

“I love cooking for you… all. This is one of the sweetest things anyone’s ever done for me.”

“Bitty, I--”

The chant of “Bitty! Bitty! Bitty!” coming from the kitchen made Jack and Bitty laugh. 

“Guess I should get back to the party.” 

“Your fans await,” Jack replied.

Jack watched as Bitty ran into the kitchen and began dancing with Holster. He looked so happy, and Jack loved being able to do this for Bitty. There was nothing Jack enjoyed more than seeing Bitty happy, than making him happy...

Oh.

_OH._

Jack quietly slipped away, went upstairs to his room and pulled out his phone.

“Papa?”

«Jack! It’s good to hear from you. Your maman and I were just talking about you.»

«Papa, I...»

«Is everything all right?»

«Yeah, we just gave Bittle his oven today.»

«Right! Operation Oven. Was he surprised?»

«He was so excited, he cried.»

«Aw, it’s nice you could do that for your friend, huh?»

Jack took a deep grounding breath.

«I think I want him to be more than a friend.»

«Yes?»

«Yes.»

«But?»

Jack sat on the edge of his bed and bounced slightly on the mattress.

«What if he doesn’t feel the same way?»

«Do you think he does?»

«I don’t know. Maybe?»

«So maybe he does, Jack.» 

«We’ve gotten pretty close lately. I taught him how to knit.»

«Taught him how to knit?» Bob chuckled. «You’re definitely using the Zimmermann charm there, son.»

«Papa,» Jack said with annoyance.

«So let him know.»

«What if he’s not interested and it changes our friendship? Everything? I don’t think I can lose him, Papa.»

«Look, Jack, it might change everything, but maybe in the best possible way. And son, you might think you’re fooling everyone with the reasons you’re giving for picking Providence, but I know why you really picked it. You do, too...»

Jack gripped the phone and remained quiet.

«Jack?»

He pinched the bridge of his nose. «Yeah?»

«You know what your Uncle Wayne says. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.»

Jack nodded to himself and smiled as he thought about Bitty.

He returned to the party and found Bitty serving out slices of pie to the party goers.

“Where you’d run off to? I was afraid you wouldn’t get any pie,” Bitty said when Jack approached him.

Jack leaned in and placed his hand on the small of Bitty’s back.

“Come up to my room in a bit?” he whispered. “I have something for you.”

Bitty looked up at Jack with wide eyes.

“Okay.”

Jack took the plate of pie Bitty offered him and smiled as he began to eat it; the music played loudly around them.

“So, Bits! Team dinner tomorrow? We’ll buy the lasagna fixings and you get to break in the oven some more?” Ransom asked.

“Totally,” Lardo added with a small fist bump to Shitty.

Jack took a big forkful of pie as he smiled shyly at Bitty. Bitty’s laughter bubbled out of him when he locked eyes with Jack.

“That sounds wonderful,” Bitty replied, not looking away from Jack who still held his gaze and smile.

Jack nodded subtly, put his plate down and pushed through the crowd as he exited the kitchen.

“Um… I’m going to the bathroom. Be right back,” Bitty said and rose from the table. 

Bitty knocked on Jack’s door.

“Come in.”

Bitty closed the door behind him and leaned against the door, his hand still on the doorknob.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

Jack sat on his bed, visibly nervous, and motioned for Bitty to join him. Bitty sat down and inhaled shakily; his body practically vibrating.

“I have a present for you.”

“Another one? Jack--”

“Here,” Jack said as he placed a small gift bag on Bitty’s lap.

Bitty took out the tissue paper and reached in. He pulled out the mittens Jack made just for him and gasped softly.

“Jack, they’re beautiful.”

“I want to make sure that you’ll be warm enough in the winter.”

“Oh…” Bitty said as his face fell a little. “Planning ahead, huh? Making sure I won’t become a popsicle this winter when you’re no longer around to check up on me?”

Jack then understood Bitty’s sudden change in expression.

“Bittle, no.”

Bitty stroked the mittens and didn’t look at Jack.

“Bitty,” Jack said gently. “Bitty, look at me.”

Bitty turned to face Jack.

“I don’t want to miss you,” Jack said.

“Jack?”

“I don’t want to miss you. That’s why I signed with Providence.”

“I-I don’t understand,” Bitty said as tears began to well in his eyes.

“I want to be near you as much as I possibly can for as long as I possibly can.”

A tear rolled down Bitty’s face as Jack leaned in. 

He caressed Bitty’s face and gently pressed a kiss to Bitty’s lips. And in that kiss, each one replayed all the special moments they had been sharing the last few months; all the smiles, the mutual glances, the supportive friendship and laughter—and they knew. 

They just knew. 

**+++**

Jack reached back to stretch his quad as the sun peered out of the horizon. The early morning Providence chill was still in the air, the day brisker than what Jack had been anticipating. He yawned once and thought about going back to his warm bed—it had been quite the struggle to actually leave it, but he was already up and out. Five miles it would be.

Jack pulled his toque over his ears. It was somewhat misshapen and had several dropped stitches, but he didn’t care. Jack loved his toque. So very, very much.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to [Devereauxs_Disease](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Devereauxs_Disease/) for holding my hand and giving this a looksee. <3 Thank you, MB. You're the best! 
> 
> [Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac](http://store.doverpublications.com/0486241785.html).
> 
> All OMGCP characters belong to the amazing Ngozi Ukazu. 
> 
> Come and say hi [on Tumblr](http://wrathofthestag.tumblr.com/).


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